Device for suspending harness



(No Model.) 3 SheetsS heet 2.

G. O. HALE. DEVICE FOR- SUSPENDING HARNESS.

No. 330,320. Patented Nov. 10', 1885.

N. PETERS. Phcla-mhagraphnr. Washington 0,0.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets--Sheet 3.

i G. G. HALE.

DEVICE FOR SUSPENDING HARNESS. No. 330,320. Patented Nov. 10, 1885.

N. PETERS. Pmwmqm hu, W-uhinglon, a. c

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GEORGE o. HALE, or KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

DEVECE FOR SUS PEN DING HARNESS EEPBGIEICATION forming part of LettersPatent No. 330,320, dated November 10, 1.885.

Application filed February 2, 1885. Serial No. 154,616. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE C. HALE, a citizen of the United States,residing at KansasOity, in the county of Jackson and State of Missouri,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Swinging Harness,of which the following is a specification, reference being had thereinto the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to improvements in swinging harness, especiallyadapted for use by fire-departments; and the novelty consists in theconstruction, combinatiomand the adaptation of the various parts forservice, substantially as hereinafter fully set forth, and moreparticularly pointed out in the claims.

My invention has for its object to wholly suspend a swinging harnessover the pole of a fire-engine or like apparatus, so that the horses canreadily place themselves in position for hitching without obstruction bythe harness, and with one effort to detach the harness simultaneouslywith the lowering thereof from its suspending-frame.

My invention has, further, for its object the provision of means wherebythe harness can be suspended at proper height and be quickly and readilydetached from the suspending devices and secured in position on thehorses.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a swinging harnessembodying my invention in position over the pole of a fire-engine orlike apparatus, showing one complete set of harness, the other set,exclusive of the collar, being omitted for the sake of clearness. Fig. 2is an enlarged detail View of the suspending-hook and the collar. Fig.3is an enlarged side elevation of the hook. plan View of theharness-suspending frame detached from the apparatus, and Figs. 5 and 6are enlarged details of the equaliziugrod. Figs. 7 and 8 are a plan andside elevation of the suspending-frame when made adjustable, and Fig. 9is an enlarged detail thereof.

Referring to the drawings, A designates a collar, thelower end of oneside of which is connected by a chain or strap, a, with the forward endof the pole A; B B, the traces or tugs, connected at their rear endswith a whiffietree, b, by chains b secured to the doubletree, the latterbeing pivoted to the pole A, as usual.

Fig. 4 isa- For the sake of clearness,I will describe only one set ofharness; but it will be understood that two sets of harness aregenerally, if not universally, used. Ipreferably employ in thisapparatus a collar constructed in accordance with the device shown anddescribed in Letters Patent No. 229,120 granted to me on June 22, 1880;but I would haveit understood that I hold myself at liberty to employ acollar of any construction other than that shown in said LettersPatent,in which safety from flying open and quickness of adjustment,850., are combined.

O designates the harness-suspending frame, preferably, though notnecessarily, rectangular, composed of side and cross bars, 0 0, securedtogether at-their ends and strengthened by straining-rods 0 runningdiagonally across from corner to corner of the frame, as shown. One endof each of the rods 0 is rigidly secured so the frame at the angleformed by the meeting ends of the cross and side bars, while the otherend is screw-threaded, as at c, and passes through slots in the bars 0 Oand bearing-blocks c, and receive thumb-nuts 0 thus providing meanswhereby the frame can be made more rigid by taking up slack inthe joints thereof. The frame may be made rigid, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.,above described, or ad j ustable, to accommodate harnesses of varyingsizes, as shown in Figs. 7, 8, and 9. When the frame is made adjustable,the side bars, 0, are each preferably formed in two pieces or sec tions,in which case one end of each section is secured to the cross-bar C,while the other end is preferably provided with a slotted. strap, d,bolted or otherwise secured thereto, as presently described. Thesections are secured together in any desired position by means of one ormore pins or bolts which pass through the slotted straps and are held bymeans of thumb -nuts 01 or keys which are driven through slots in thebolts.

In lieu ofthe straining-rods I may employ braces C and secure them tothe cross and side bars, 0 G at the angle formed by the meeting ends ofsaid bars, as seen by reference to Fig. -9, thus providing strong bracesat the points of strain. It will be observed that by means of theslotted side bars and means for securing the same together the frame 0can be adjusted in the direction of the length of the harness, so as toaccommodate harnesses of different sizes, which is greatly desired.

D designates cords, ropes, chains, or straps for suspending the harnessfrom the frame 0, one end of each cord or chain being connected to theframe, while the lower end thereof is provided with nieans-as, forexample, a combined spring and hook, E, presently describedforattachment to the harness.

I employ four cords or chains and hooks for suspending each set ofharness, two of which are arranged at the front of the harness forattachment to the collar, while of the remaining pair one engages a ringon the back-band and the other the outside trace. The two frontsuspendingcords, which are preferably not secured to the same bar of theframe 0, engage the middle and outside terrets or ringse of the collar,thus elevating the outside end of the collar and holding the sectionsthereof apart. The frame-suspending cords I and the harnesssuspendingcords D may, if preferred, all be attached to the end bars of the frame.Cords and hooks are arranged at the rear of the frame in like mannerasthose at the front thereof, for supporting the traces, 8m, the hooksuspended from the cross-bar O engaging the ring 0, which connects theback band and straps, and the hook suspended from the side bar engagingthe ring 9, which connects the back-strap f and outside trace, B.

It will be observed that the harness is wholly suspended and free fromthe apparatus, and that the collar is tilted to one side and the outsidetrace elevated to aheight sufficient to enable the horse to quickly andreadily move into proper position without obstruction from the traces,collar, or other portion of the harness.

The snap-hook E consists of a bar having a flat rectangular body, h,provided with or formed into, at its lower end, a hook, h, and a spring,i, riveted at its upper end to the bar and adapted to bear at its lowerend on the extreme end of the hook h, as shown. hook is provided with alip, h, having a beveled or rounded inner surface, to enable a ring orterret of the harness to pass readily into the hook, the lower end ofsaid hook being abruptly curved inward to bring the weight of theharness thereon and relieve the spring from strain, while the force ofspring 1' can be varied by means of the sleeve j, adapted to slide upand down on the bar and spring, and provided with an adjustable screw,is, adapted to bear on the rear surface of the bar, and. thus hold thesleeve in any desired position thereon. H H designate cleats or barssecured to the ceiling immediately over the cross-bars O 0, each havingrollers h if, the roller h being set on a plane below its fellow, andmounted in a cutaway portion, 71 of the rearend of the bar H.

. The frame is suspended in proper position by means of cords or ropes II, preferably four in number, two secured to each end of the Thecrossbars 0, near the ends thereof, and thence passing over the pulleysh h, and connecting with a rod, J, extending transverselyacross from barto bar, the remaining two cords or ropes of each side bar beingconnected to the ends thereof, as shown.

K designates a bar or cleat secured to one of the walls of the room,near the ceiling thereof, provided with rollers is, over which passcords L L which are secured to the equalizing-rod J, and bear on pulleysK K, the latter pulley K being secured to the wall in a line with thebar K. The cords L L connect with the cord L, which extends down to thefloor, and is provided with a hook or ring, m, and a weight, M.

N designates a hook secured to the wall or a post, N, over which ispassed the ring or hook m of the cord L, thus serving to secure the ropeL, by means of which the frame can be raised or lowered. Vhen it isdesired to lower the frame and harness for the purpose of cleaning thelatter, the hook or ring m is disengaged from the hook N and passed overa hook or bracket, 12, secured to the post N at a distance above thehook at equal to the distance it is desired to lower the frame from itsnormal suspended position.

Odesignates the reins or lines of the harness, which are provided attheir forward ends with snap-hooks 0, which, when the harness issuspended, engage-hooks 0, preferably of similar construction to thehooks E, secured to the collar and to the drivers seat of the apparatus,as is usual.

The operation of my invention is as follows: In case of the striking ofan alarm of fire, the horses move to the proper position beneath theharness, when the latter is disengaged from the suspended frame bymerely pulling down uponthe same, after which the collar is fastened andthe snap-hooks of the reins secured to the rings of the bits, the hook oof the collar permitting of the ready withdrawal of the snap-hook 0,which may be of any preferred construction. The frame, being relieved ofthe weight of the harness, will automatically be drawn up out of the wayof the engine and driver by the counter-weight M and its suspendingropes or chains, the combined weight of the frame and harness beinggreater than the weight of the counter-weight. In order to overcome thedanger of the harness falling too low, and to suspend the same at itsproper height, I employ the hook m, located at a suitable point.

It will be observed that during the elevating of the frame by the weightthe bars thereof are kept in a line with each other, or, in

other words, the frame is maintained at a level whether made rigid oradjustable, to the means for maintaining the same in a horizontalposition when drawn upward, to suspending the outer traces and collar,the former being hitched to the whiffletree, and to my particularconstruction of snap-hook.

I am aware that modifications in details of construction and of the formand proportion of parts herein shown and described can be made withoutdeparting from the principle or sacrificing the advantages of myinventionas, for instance, the side bars can each be made in one piece,of any preferred material, and the construction and arrangement of cleatH, pulleys, counter-weight, &c., can be changed. I would therefore haveit understood that I do not confine myself to the apparatus herein shownand described as an embodiment of my invention, but reserve the right tomake such changes as fairly fall within the scope of my invention hereindisclosed, in view of state of art prior to the date of my invention.

It is obvious that in lieu of the cordsfor connecting the hooks orclamps to the suspended frame the necessary flexible connec tion can besecured by means of rods which are connected to the frame and providedat the lower end with suitable hooks or clamps.

Inventions herein shown and described, but not claimed, will be made thesubj ect-n1atter of a separate application.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is-

1. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a frame, harnesssuspended from said frame, cords or chains adapted to suspend the frame,and an equalizing-bar, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination, with the swinging harness, of a rectangularsuspended frame ex tending over the harness from front to rear and sideto side, substantially as shown, and a series of hooks or clamps securedto the frame by means of cords or chains depending therefrom, allarranged and operating as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a frame, harnesssuspended from said frame, cords or ropes connected with and adapted tosuspend said frame, a hoistingrope to which the frame-suspending cordsare connected, a counter-weight, and a hook, as N, with which thecounter-weight is adapted to engage, substantially as described, and forthe purpose specified.

4. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a suspended frame, a setof harness detachably suspended therefrom,bars or cleats secured to theceiling and arranged over the frame, cords or chains connected to theframe and adapted to suspend the same, an equalizingbar, to which theframe-suspending cords are connected, and a rope, also connected to saidbar and provided with a counter-weight, substantially as described, andfor the pur pose specified.

5. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a suspended frame, a setof harness detachably suspended therefrom, bars or cleats secured to theceiling and arranged over the frame, cords or chains connected with andadapted to suspend the frame, an equalizingbar, to which theframe-suspending cords are connected, and a rope, also connected to saidbar and provided with a counter-weight adapted to engage a hook, as N,whereby when the harness is detached the weight will become disengagedfrom the hook and the frame be carried upwardly out of the way of theapparatus, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a frame, a set ofharness suspended therefrom by suitable means, as D, cleats or bars H,arranged over said frame and provided with rollers, frame-suspendingcords I, bar J, having the ends of the cords I connected thereto, acleat secured to the wall of the room and provided with pulleys, ropes,or chains L L, connected to the equalizingbar and provided with acounter-weight, and a hook, as N, all arranged as shown and described,and for the purpose specified.

7. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a suspended frame havingcords or chains provided with hooks depending therefrom, and its endbars adjustably connected together, substantially as described.

8. The combination, with a swinging harness, of a suspendedcounterweighted frame, composed of cross and side bars, the latter beingmade in two sections, each section provided with slotted straps andbolts for adj ustably securing the same together, cords or chainsconnected to said frame and provided with hooks or clamps, and a set ofharness with which the hooks are adapted to engage, substantially as andfor the purpose set forth.

9. The combination,with a swinging harness, a suspended frame, ropes orcords, as D, connected thereto and provided at their free ends withhooks or clamps, as E, consisting of a bar provided with a hook at itslower end, a spring riveted to said bar, and a sliding sleeve providedwith a thumb-screw, as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE C. HALE.

Witnesses THos. H. EDWARDS, H. G. GRAIN.

